Online marketplace eBay said Tuesday that it had rebuffed a $56 billion takeover offer from video game retailer GameStop, calling the unsolicited proposal “neither credible nor attractive”.
“eBay’s board is confident that the company, under its current management team, is well positioned to continue to drive sustainable growth, execute with discipline, and deliver long-term value for our shareholders,” board chairman Paul Pressler said in a statement.
GameStop, well known among American gamers but a much smaller company than eBay, made its stock-and-cash deal in early May.
Analysts quickly expressed doubts that it would be able to finance the deal, though its CEO Ryan Cohen said in a television interview that “we have the ability to issue stock to get the deal done”.
GameStop has roughly $9.4 billion in available assets and said it had secured a commitment letter from the Canadian investment firm TD Securities for $20 billion in financing.
Its offer valued eBay at $125 per share, but in a sign that investors were sceptical of its success, eBay shares closed at just $108.13 on the Nasdaq composite on Monday.
In its statement, Pressler said “We have sharpened our strategic focus, strengthened execution, enhanced our marketplace and seller experience, and consistently returned capital to shareholders.”
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